Lady Cats down Baldwin for second time this season

Jordan Mynsted goes up for two of her team-high 18 points during Friday’s six-point win at Baldwin High School.

BALDWIN CITY – For the second time in a month, the Louisburg girls basketball team had to face off with Baldwin.

A month ago, Baldwin took the Lady Cats to the wire, but Louisburg hung on by three points back in December. This time, Louisburg had to travel to Baldwin in hopes of keeping its perfect season alive.

Louisburg trailed by one going into the fourth quarter, but the Lady Cats scored 22 points in the final frame to leave with a 57-51 victory over the Bulldogs. It was the Lady Cats’ eighth consecutive win on the season.

“Beating Baldwin on the road was huge,” Louisburg coach Adrianne Lane said. “The girls were so excited and very proud of themselves. They worked very hard for that win, and afterwards they were very happy.”

There was a lot for the Lady Cats (8-0) to be happy about as they put together a team effort that allowed them to escape with a difficult road victory against one of the Frontier League’s most successful programs in recent years.

Louisburg made the plays in the fourth quarter when it needed it and several of them came from the trio of Madilyn Melton, Megan Foote and Jordan Mynsted.

The three Louisburg players combined for 19 of the team’s 22 points in the fourth and made several key plays down the stretch.

The Lady Cats were also solid on the defensive end despite a couple players having to deal with foul problems.

“I felt the team played great in the fourth quarter,” Lane said, “The girls all did a great job and played their roles. Brooklyn (Diederich) and Megan guarded their two best guards perfectly down the stretch. Brooklyn did a fantastic job playing tough defense even though she had four fouls. Delaney Wright also came in and gave us a spark on the defensive end. She took two charges towards the end of the game that gave our team momentum on the offensive end. Madilyn did a fantastic job against Baldwin’s post player as she blocked her out and stepped and helped when needed. 

“Megan, Madilyn, and Jordan had 19 points between the three of them in the fourth quarter. Having multiple girls who can score under pressure says a lot about the maturity of our team.”

Mynsted led the Lady Cats with 18 points on the night to go along with three blocks. Foote had 13 points but also tallied a team-high eight assists and four steals.

Melton also finished in double figures with 12 points and had five rebounds and four assists from her forward spot.

Sophomore point guard Brianne Kuhlman was a model of consistency for Louisburg. Kuhlman played the entire game and tallied six points and a team-high six rebounds. She also had zero turnovers on the night.

“Brianne did a great job,” Lane said. “She handled the ball the entire game and did not have one turnover. The team definitely looks for her when we rebound and she does a great job staying calm and composed when bringing the ball up and starting the offense in a tight game.”

Louisburg also came through when it needed to from the free-throw line. The Lady Cats knocked down 5 of 7 from the line in the fourth quarter and finished 11-13 for the game.

“Our free-throw shooting is what sealed the win for us,” Lane said. “The girls are very committed to making free throws in pressure situations. We shoot a lot of free throws in practice to help them stay composed during the game.”

Louisburg will continue its difficult schedule Friday when it hosts Spring Hill as the Lady Cats look to keep their perfect season intact. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 16 10 9 22 – 57

BAL 13 10 13 15 – 51

LOUISBURG (8-0): Jordan Mynsted 8-13 2-3 18; Megan Foote 4-8 2-2 13; Madilyn Melton 5-14 2-2 12; Brianne Kuhlman 1-2 4-4 6; Brooklyn Diederich 1-2 1-2 4; Alyse Moore 2-5 0-0 4. Totals: 21-45 11-13 57. 3-point field goals: 4, (Foote 3, Diederich)

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